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Powerful Storms Strike Texas; China Says It's Broken up Plot to Kidnap Athletes and Tourists at Beijing Olympics; Chaos at the Airport
Aired April 10, 2008 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Brianna Keilar. Heidi continues maternity leave.
HARRIS: And you will see events come into the NEWSROOM live on this Thursday, April 10th.
Here's what's on the rundown.
KEILAR: Dangerous skies. Powerful storms strike Texas. This scene possibly a preview of a tornado outbreak all across the heartland today.
HARRIS: And new this morning. China says it's broken up a plot to kidnap athletes and tourists at the Beijing Olympics.
KEILAR: And chaos at the airport. American shuts down hundreds of flights again today. "Stranded," in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Waking up to disaster. Devastation this morning after vicious killer storms, tornadoes, flooding, even potential blizzards. What a deadly mix. There he is.
CNN meteorologist Rob Marciano is following all the extreme weather for us.
But first, Rob, let's check out this scene. Dallas overnight. Listen to that. Boy, what's in store for today?
Rob, give us some thoughts here. What's in the forecast?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, a little bit more of the same. Everything is shifting a little bit farther to the east. Keep in mind that the storm that's produced all this, the center of it is still back in through eastern Colorado, just pulling into the Texas Panhandle now. It does include some snow by the way. But a pretty hefty line of thunderstorms rolled through Dallas. We saw that video just to the west of Dallas down 20 is where we had a tornado touchdown and probably another tornado touched down in San Angela.
All right. So here's where the line is. By the way, these watch boxes up. You're familiar with them. The red ones are tornado watch boxes meaning that tornadoes are possible within this area because of the atmospheric variables that are lining up once again today.
Right now, it doesn't look too horrible. We have seen some severe thunderstorms roll through Tyler and we've seen some stuff roll through Ft. Smith, Arkansas, heading towards Little Rock. Take a look at Tulsa. They just -- they had their heavy weather about two hours ago. KTUL, thanks, guys, for that affiliate shot. You can see a little bit of brightening on the horizon there so.
After the storms rolled through there, things are beginning to look up just a little bit. Not so much if you live in St. Louis or Springfield. There are 23 counties now in southern Missouri that are under a flash flood warning, meaning flood could happen at any time and just small stream or even sewer. And this is an area that has seen a ton of water over the past several weeks and they're getting more, of course.
Now the northern side of this storm, big-time snow. We've got blizzard warnings that are up for parts of the upper Midwest. 10 to 20 inches of snow possible for parts of the Colorado Rockies and the blowing snow advisory for parts of Denver, Colorado. Here's your blizzard warnings for eastern parts of South Dakota in through parts of Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin. 6 to 12 inches of snow expected there.
But just take a look at this, Tony and Brianna, the expanse of this, all the way from the Gulf of Mexico to really the Canadian border. And I've counted 15 or so states that so far are affected by this massive storm system.
HARRIS: OK. We'll all be busy this morning. Thanks, Rob.
MARCIANO: You got it.
KEILAR: And also, we've got a closer look at some of the devastation that people are waking up to this morning. A whole lot of damage and flooding as well. An Oklahoma woman died when her car skidded off the road in heavy rains and several people have been treated for storm-related injuries.
A handful of people in Texas faced with the daunting task of starting over this morning. Their homes, as you can see, completely gone. Many others facing a huge clean-up. Cars, even a tractor- trailer, you can see here, just flipped over like toys, and as you can imagine, thousands have lost electricity in that storm.
And also a lot of destruction today in Breckenridge, Texas. Stevens County Sheriff James Reeves is on the phone.
Sir, can you just tell us the latest that you're seeing there on the ground?
SHERIFF JAMES REEVES, STEVENS COUNTY, TEXAS: Good morning. Yes, I can. We're in the process of a recovery and assessing the damage that we received. But right now, we're just feeling really blessed because it could have been a lot worse.
KEILAR: Tell us about the injuries and the extent of the damage.
REEVES: OK. As far as injuries, we've only had three reported. All three of those were minor injuries from flying debris. No loss of life has been reported. No serious injuries. As far as the damage, we had numerous mobile homes that were totally destroyed. We have approximately 20 structured homes that received major damage. We're still trying to process the amount of damage as far as businesses and that sort of thing. Our biggest problem right now is not having electricity.
KEILAR: And Sheriff Reeves, what kind of notice did folks there get and what kind of preparations did they make?
REEVES: Well, you know, this is one of those things where you can't say enough about the National Weather Service. They did a fantastic job. We had ample opportunity to get our spotters out. We had our spotters out. We were right on top of it whenever the tornadoes formed and touched down.
In the southwest part of our county, southwest of Breckenridge, approximately 12 miles, and the spotters tracked them. Fortunately they hit -- where it hit was a sparsely populated part of town, unincorporated part of town, just outside the city limits.
KEILAR: All right. The sheriff of Stevens County, James Reeves. Thanks so much for being with us and giving us the latest there, sir.
REEVES: Yes, ma'am. Thank you.
KEILAR: And when the weather becomes the news, remember to send us your iReports. You can go to CNN.com, click on iReport or you can type iReport@CNN.com into your cell phone. But, remember, of course, Tony...
HARRIS: Yes.
KEILAR: ...stay safe.
HARRIS: Absolutely.
Boy, stranded again for the third day in a row. American Airlines canceling hundreds of flights.
Our Deborah Feyerick is at LaGuardia in New York.
Deb, beginning to sound like a broken record, another day of frustration for people planning to fly with American today.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, definitely. You know, Tony, the problem with all these cancellations is that it creates a chain effect, especially with those people who have connecting flights. We spoke to one man. He said that he was flying from Venezuela to Miami to Cincinnati. Instead he had to fly from Venezuela to New York, stay here overnight, and then continue on to Cincinnati. So for some people, it's causing not only hour-long delays but day-long delays. It's disrupted families, business travelers, students heading off on spring break, and left a really bitter taste for many passengers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK (voice over): From Dallas to Chicago to New York, the scene was the same and the feeling universal.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: It's just crazy.
FEYERICK: American Airlines canceled more than 1,000 flights Wednesday, and nearly that many for today, leaving more than 100,000 people scrambling.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: Have to spend the night. I can't get out until tomorrow. My luggage is on its way to Detroit.
FEYERICK: While some rush to catch a new flight...
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: We need to get to Love Field in about the next 30 minutes.
FEYERICK: Others worked the phones or tried to relax. But for many, there was no getting over the feeling that the whole mess could have been avoided.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: They knew this was happening with the airplanes. So why do we, the common folk, have to suffer?
FEYERICK: This is the second time in just weeks that American has grounded the MD-80s. The problem is wires in the planes' rear wheel. If not properly secured, they could cause a short circuit, fire or even an explosion.
The airline thought it fixed the issue the first time around. But Monday, inspectors from the FAA said not all of the work was done to its exact specifications.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We felt and our mechanics felt they had greater latitude, they did not.
FEYERICK: Back in the terminal, the vouchers, snacks and juice did little to appease frustrated flyers.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: I have all my miles with American but I'm willing to sacrifice all of them to never have to fly on American for the rest of my life.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: Now you can see the arrival and departure board here at American Airlines at LaGuardia Airport. Not as many yellow canceled signs as there were the other day. The situation is improving but still it is affecting flights going out and also coming in. A number of other carriers have tried to accommodate American Airlines passengers by accepting tickets. American Airlines doing the best it can as it try to give people overnight lodging.
The problem does seem to be improving and American Airlines is saying that in the future they're going to hire an independent contractor to basically review all the FAA directives so that they can troubleshoot these problems, do them when they're supposed to, and not face this meltdown in the future -- Tony?
HARRIS: Meltdown. That is the word. 1,000 flights canceled yesterday, 900 plus today, Deborah Feyerick at LaGuardia Airport for us.
Deb, good to see you, thank you.
KEILAR: The Munich Olympics, 1972, when much of the world was introduced to terrorism. China says it has uncovered a similar plot that targeted the summer games in Beijing. But can China be believed?
CNN's Eunice Yoon looks for answers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
EUNICE YOON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: China said it's uncovered two terrorist plots aiming to kidnap athletes and attack tourist hotels during the summer Olympic games.
The Ministry of Public Security says several members of a ring based in western Xinjiang province, a region home to China's minority Muslim Uighur population have been arrested. Police have confiscated explosives and poison.
The government says the ring had planned to kidnap athletes, foreign journalists and other visitors at the game. But human rights groups raised questions if authorities are exaggerating these accounts to tighten their control of the region especially in light of the protests against their policy on Tibet.
Like Tibet, many among the minority population in Xinjiang are agitating for greater independence.
Eunice Yoon, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: The Olympic torch and the heat being felt around the world, the latest stop, of course, San Francisco, the only North American city on the torch's route to China. Now once again, the torch ignited more scuffle between supporters of China and those protesting the country's human rights record.
Now of course, last-minute changes for the torch run. Some people waited hours on the original route only to discover they were totally out of luck. Even the planned closing ceremony at the Waterfront was canceled. Instead, it was moved to San Francisco International Airport. The flame was placed on a plane and it wasn't even displayed. HARRIS: You know, China has long denied any human rights abuses and instead says one man has stirred up much of the trouble. The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibet for decades. He has lived in exile out of reach of China's control. He rejects China's claim that he is instigating violence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DALAI LAMA, EXILED TIBETAN SPIRITUAL LEADER: I sent a message to Tibetans in the San Francisco area, please don't make any violence of activities. Of course, the expression of their feeling is up to them. Nobody has the right to say, "Shut up." It's an individual right, isn't it? Actually one cause of problem inside Tibet is because there's no freedom of speech.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Later today, the Dalai Lama Is due to arrive in the United States for a six-day visit. President Bush has urged Beijing to reach out to the spiritual leader.
KEILAR: Let's talk now about President Bush's plan for Iraq. He is delivering a major speech this morning.
Let's go live now to CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.
Now President Bush is basing his remarks on what his top commanders are telling him, right?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Brianna, and here at the Pentagon all eyes will be on the announcement that President Bush is expected to make, which is that the tours of duty for active-duty army soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan is finally going to be reduced from 15 months on the ground to 12 months.
This is issue number one for these young troops on the frontline. Anytime, any of -- we the journalists go to Iraq or Afghanistan, this is what you hear these young people talk about, 15 months in a combat zone away from your family is absolutely grueling. With the surge coming to an end in Iraq and a re-evaluation of security conditions there, top commanders have recommended and by all accounts President Bush has accepted that recommendation. It will go into effect in August. But probably won't begin affecting troop rotations into Iraq until sometime later this year.
But, again, it is really issue number one. The president will talk about that and if you wondered, the tour of duty for General Petraeus, well, more than 12 months, more than 15 months. General Petraeus has agreed to stay until the end of the Bush administration and that's going to give him about a two-year tour of duty in Iraq -- Brianna?
KEILAR: Very interesting. Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon.
And as Barbara just told us, the commander in chief is tackling the issue of Iraq today. He's talking about shorter combat tours, live this morning. We've got a preview coming up with a political veteran later this hour in the CNN NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: You know we should have some kind of a bell or something when oil prices hit a new record high, ding, ding, ding, ding. Gas prices breaking a record -- ding, ding -- again. Both have happened again. Get ready for higher prices on just about everything just about everywhere.
Ali Velshi, you have the barrel there? That's it, doc. That's it.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It's a little -- not a bell exactly, but it's close.
HARRIS: Yes, it works. Until we get one.
VELSHI: Nice big barrel of oil. There you go, $112.21.
HARRIS: Man.
VELSHI: And that is the highest price oil has ever traded. That happened yesterday. Even now it didn't -- it settled a little lower than that but it backed up above $111. And guess what, of course, because most of us don't buy barrels of oil, we buy gallons of gas.
HARRIS: Yes.
VELSHI: And gas is up again. We have a new record overnight, Tony. $3.357. That's almost $3.36. Another increase in the price of gas, 13 cents from a month ago. Look at that, it's $2.80 a year ago. I mean we can't just be seeing these increases every day. It's hitting people, Tony.
HARRIS: Absolutely. Now -- and when we talk about the direct impact on all of us, I know in part we're talking about prices going up on any and all petroleum-based products.
VELSHI: And everything -- they (INAUDIBLE) petroleum-based that get shipped around the country. The UPS said yesterday -- UPS claimed that they move 5 percent of the goods that are in movement at any time in the United States. And they said, look, there are people who are shipping or having problem. You see they've got a hybrid vehicle there because they're trying to save money on trucks, but they're saying the fuel costs are hitting them.
Retailers, America's retailers have just come in with their sales reports for March, Tony, and it's -- the numbers are bad. Abercrombie & Fitch down 10 percent compared to the previous March. JCPenney down 12 percent. Kohl's down 15 percent. The GAP down 18 percent. They're saying people are sticking to the essentials and actually that makes some sense...
HARRIS: Yes.
VELSHI: ...because you look at the companies that have gained in March over last year, Wal-Mart and Costco.
HARRIS: I don't have money to go buy extras.
VELSHI: Right, but I need the toilet paper, I need food, I need the groceries, I need the basics.
HARRIS: There he is, "Minding Your Business" this morning, Ali Velshi in New York, bang the drum one more time. Bang the drum, that was a hit song, wasn't it, back in the day.
VELSHI: Banging the drum.
HARRIS: All right. All right, Ali, appreciate it. Thanks.
VELSHI: Hey, buddy.
KEILAR: So where is the fountain of youth? Lace up your gym shoes. Yes, it doesn't come for free, folks. And Dr. Gupta has new research on staying young.
ANNOUNCER: "Weather Update" brought to you by...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Good morning again, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
Just how safe is your car on the highway? That's not looking too good. Side impact crash tests. We've got the results.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Listen up if you drive a midsize car because the latest midsize car crash results are in. And word is today's cars are better protected in side impact crashes than they were four years ago.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says the better ratings are due to side airbags and improved design. Getting top scores, Chevrolet Malibu, Southern Aura, Dodge Avenger, Nissan Altima, the Infinity G35 and Mitsubishi Gallant. Mixed results, however, for rear and impacts. The Insurance Institute reports the Kia Optima was the only car to get a top rating.
HARRIS: You know exercise is good for you. Could it actually add years, even a decade or more to your life?
CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here. I love the sound of this.
Sanjay, great to see you.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm here for you because I want you around for a very long time, Tony.
HARRIS: They actually did a little test here. We'll get to that in a moment as to how long I'm actually going to be around.
How much exercise are we actually talking about here? GUPTA: Thirty minutes a day, most days of the week.
HARRIS: Really?
GUPTA: Yes. I mean and it doesn't have to necessarily be hard, intensive...
HARRIS: Three, four, five days, what do you think?
GUPTA: Well, I say most days. I think they sort of couch it a little bit there.
HARRIS: Yes.
GUPTA: Because you don't want to be too extreme here. But five days a week...
HARRIS: OK. OK.
GUPTA: ...is a good benchmark. And we're not talking about extreme jogging necessarily but even brisk walking. The key is to maintain it.
HARRIS: Yes.
GUPTA: Even through the middle years. As you get older, the idea is that you improve the oxygen consumption in your body and you ultimately improve the ability to expend energy as well, which seems to be the key, Tony, here.
HARRIS: Yes.
GUPTA: You know if you think about the way we measure age, it's so arbitrary.
HARRIS: Right.
GUPTA: It's literally based on revolutions of planets. What doctors care about is what is known as your physiological age. What are you doing inside your body? Forget about you look and how's your body actually doing? Several things seem to happen if you maintain this aerobic activity into 60s and 70s, even older than that. First of you, you reduce your risk of developing diabetes.
HARRIS: Wow.
GUPTA: You also really have significant cardiovascular benefits. Heart disease, obviously, biggest killer of men and women. Muscle strength, bone mineral density improves, reduce falls and fractures. Those can all be killers especially for an older person.
Tony, it also improves your mind to some extent. There's a lot of studies now showing that regular exercise increases the size and certain areas of your brain.
HARRIS: I should never stop running then. GUPTA: Improved cognition. That's right. You should be running right now.
HARRIS: Yes, right now. Well, how do we get some kind of determination? You know, this isn't an exact science, as to how much we can add, how many years to our lives?
GUPTA: Well, what they say is, first of all, a couple of things I took out of it. One is that it's never too late to start.
HARRIS: Yes. That's right.
GUPTA: I think that's important for a lot of our viewers who say, you know what, I've already crossed that threshold.
HARRIS: Right.
GUPTA: No. You can start now. They say if you start to add some of these activities, 10 to 12 years of life, meaning you become 10 to 12 years biologically younger. You're still the same age but you're biologically younger.
HARRIS: Right. And you feel better. You just -- generally you just feel better. I know you've done a lot of work in this area for your book, "Chasing Life." I thank you for the signed copy, by the way. What else can we do to help us enjoy a longer, healthier, a better quality of that life?
GUPTA: There are so many things out there that people talk about. They talk about, for example, caloric restrictions, actually reducing some of the calories from your diet. In animal studies, they show reducing calories by about a third increases lifespan by about a third.
Now a lot of people say, well, we're not necessarily living longer, we just feel like it.
HARRIS: Right. Right.
GUPTA: You know keeping (INAUDIBLE). But other things, I mean, you talk about stem cell therapies and rejuvenative cells. I believe that we're going to hear more about that within the next decade, even red wine, Veritrol, that's the substances, you remember? It was Veritrol that actually helps reverse some of the ravages of aging.
HARRIS: I don't need to remember the substance, just red wine.
GUPTA: You've got to drink a lot of it. Write that down.
HARRIS: Oh, a lot of it. No problem there.
All right. Sanjay, great to see you.
GUPTA: Any time.
HARRIS: And congratulations on the success of "Chasing Life." GUPTA: Appreciate it. Thank you very much. All right.
HARRIS: Yes, as always.
KEILAR: Can cell phones save lives? Well, maybe. Veronica De La Cruz takes a look at a new plan to set up a nationwide cell phone alert system.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: The government wants to improve the emergency response system. And Veronica de la Cruz is here with details on a plan that involves cell phones and text messages.
What can you tell us about this, Veronica?
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN INTERNET CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning to you, Brianna. You know we first reported this yesterday, discussion involving this plan, which would allow federal regulators to send out alerts using this, your cell phones in text messages. Well, that plan has been approved and the nation's four largest carriers -- Verizon, At&T, Sprint, Nextel and T-Mobile are all expected to participate, although joining on on this plan would be voluntary. These four are already on board.
KEILAR: So what types of alerts would you receive?
DE LA CRUZ: You would probably receive alerts like severe weather alerts, terrorist threats on a national level, child abductions, which would add to the already successful AMBER Alert program. And the way it's supposed to work would be a first responder, be it on the local or federal level, would notify a federal agency serving as a clearing house, and that agency, which has yet to be appointed, would then notify these cell carriers. And then messages can be sent to a county, a state or entire country depending on the type of problem.
Now at least to start t the messages will be limited to English, 90 characters and sign-up wouldn't be required as long as you subscribe to one of these participating carriers. Now this is all important because some towns and even schools already have this type of alert system in place, a text alert system. But if you're in the area, maybe you're visiting, and there's a problem, then you won't get these alerts because you're not signed up. And having this type of nationwide system in place would eliminate that concern.
I should also note here, Brianna, that if your carrier is part of the program and you don't want to be in the program, then you can always opt out.
KEILAR: But you know, it makes me think of a problem that we saw after 9/11, we even saw it after the Virginia Tech shootings last year. So many people making calls, it basically jammed the airwaves. Isn't there a concern the same thing would happen with so many texts being sent? DE LA CRUZ: Yes, you know you're right. That's exactly why they're putting a plan like this in place. This is what they would do. These messages would be sent out on a single pathway and nothing like a radio signal and that would avoid all the congestion that happens right now. In order for it to work, carriers would need to upgrade their systems. They'd also need to upgrade cell phones.
So according to the plan approved yesterday, once a federal agency is appointed to be in charge of all of this, then cell phone providers would have 10 months to comply with the new systems requirement. So we definitely have some time before this rolls out. They're saying 2010 could be the target date, maybe sooner.
KEILAR: All right. Veronica de la Cruz for us in New York, very good information, appreciate it.
HARRIS: The Plains pounded and the worst may be on the way. Dangerous storms. Live to the Severe Weather Center shortly.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
KEILAR: Good morning. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Brianna Keilar.
HARRIS: I need to start running or something here. Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris.
The New York Stock Exchange right now. Wow, let's get the business day started. Sanjay's in my head now with this fitness and running and adding years to your life here. The Dow starts today at 12,547 after closing down nearly 50 points yesterday.
Our money people at CNNMoney.com have been crunching the numbers, Brianna, and have concluded that we could be in for a bit of a rocky start to the business day. But look at this, what do they know?
Out of the gate, we are up 16 points. We are checking the numbers and the action with the markets all morning long with Susan Lisovicz right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
KEILAR: And we're talking severe weather today, Tony. We've been seeing tornadoes, a big one...
HARRIS: Yes.
KEILAR: ...and especially in Texas and we're keeping our eye on maybe more today, right, Rob?
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Well, Rob, look, talk about trends here, you know, you're going to have to at some point here give us the extended explanation as to why we are locked in to this pattern for what feels like at least a month now -- we don't have time for it now. But really, our friends in the lower plains need an explanation because this is...
MARCIANO: I'll give you this much as an (INAUDIBLE).
HARRIS: OK.
MARCIANO: Sometimes when you get a big system like this.
HARRIS: Yes.
MARCIANO: A huge system, it's like a big log coming down a stream and dislodging any sort of dam that's built up.
HARRIS: Right. OK.
MARCIANO: And this may very well be the system that shakes up the pattern and maybe we can get the flooding situation over and done with. We'll see if that happens.
KEILAR: It's good to know, though, Rob. We spoke with the sheriff from Stevens County there where that tornado went through Breckenridge, Texas.
HARRIS: Yes.
KEILAR: And he said it was only just a few injuries, just flying debris, but really nothing major. So that's good news.
MARCIANO: That was a big tornado on the radar scope so.
KEILAR: Yes. He said they were very lucky but actually he said it was all thanks to the National Weather Service so.
HARRIS: Yes, he did. He did.
MARCIANO: All right, guys. Very well. Appreciate it.
KEILAR: Thanks, Rob.
HARRIS: Thanks, man.
Stranded and frustrated. Airline passengers are watching us this morning. You're stranded, you're frustrated, and of course, in limbo as well for the third day in a row. American Airlines canceling more than 900 flights. That's more than 2,000 this week as its MD-80s undergo a second round of FAA-mandated inspections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: There's just no organization here.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: We've been here over an hour and no one's told us anything.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: I have to spend the night, I can't get out until tomorrow. My luggage is on its way to Detroit.
UNIDENTIFIED PASSENGER: We need to get to Love Field in about the next 30 minutes or we're really in trouble.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: American Airlines trying to make amends with vouchers, refunds and compensation for overnight stays.
What's under your seat when you fly? Right now, possibly lots of unexpected cargo. Coming this summer, the TSA is ordering all cargo be screened for explosives. "USA Today" reported tons of goods, including computers and auto parts, will have to be X-rayed. It could lead to longer delivery times but the rule closes a dangerous gap in security.
KEILAR: Disturbing new details coming from that polygamist compound raided by Texas authorities. Agents there say they found a bed inside that temple there where adult men apparently had sex with underage girls after wedding ceremonies. According to an affidavit, it was one of several beds inside the temple.
Court documents also identify the suspect accused by a 16-year- old girl of beating, choking and sexually assaulting her after their spiritual marriage. That's what it's called in the FLDS church. Authorities have an arrest warrant for this man, Dale Evans Barlow. He was actually sent to 45 days in jail in Arizona on charges of conspiracy to have sex with a minor.
Officials say they believe the girl behind the accusations against Barlow may be in protective custody. Her phone call led to this raid. Authorities removed 416 children from this compound and they're hopeful that she is among them.
But we are expecting to learn more about efforts to help those children taken from the compound. We're going to have live coverage of a news conference scheduled for 11:00 Eastern Time.
HARRIS: The political battle over the Iraq war. Hillary Clinton trying to one-up Barack Obama with her anti-war stance.
Senior political analyst Bill Schneider with the CNN Election Express in Philadelphia.
Bill, good morning to you. Well, what exactly is Hillary Clinton saying?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, she's been getting more aggressive, Tony, on the Iraq issue and drawing some pointed contrasts with her rivals.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice over): Hillary Clinton isn't playing defense on the Iraq issue anymore. SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Senator Obama, on the other hand, says he'll end the war, but his top foreign policy adviser said he won't necessarily follow the plan he's been talking about during this campaign, that the plan is just words.
SCHNEIDER: Clinton was referring to former Barack Obama adviser Samantha Power who told the BBC in early March that it would be difficult for the next president to deliver on a firm withdrawal deadline.
For much of the campaign, Obama has tried to keep Clinton on the defensive.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have been clear that this was a strategic error, unlike Senator Clinton who voted for this war and has never taken responsibility for that vote.
SCHNEIDER: Anti-war activists once booed her for refusing to set a date certain for withdrawal. But when she questioned General Petraeus on Tuesday, she got pretty aggressive.
CLINTON: What conditions would have to exist for you to recommend to the president that the current strategy is not working?
SCHNEIDER: She was not happy with Petraeus's answer.
On Wednesday, she put the question to President Bush.
CLINTON: I call on the president to answer the question that General Petraeus did not. What is our end game in Iraq?
SCHNEIDER: Clinton now calls herself the only real anti-war candidate, in contrast to John McCain and Obama.
CLINTON: That's the choice. One candidate will continue the war and keeping troops in Iraq indefinitely. One candidate only says he'll end the war. And one candidate is ready, willing and able to end the war and to rebuild our military while honoring our soldiers and our veterans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Each candidate, each Democrat, is going after the other's base here in Pennsylvania. Obama has been campaigning for blue-collar votes on the economic issue while Clinton is going after Obama's anti-war base -- Tony?
HARRIS: CNN senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, for us this morning. Bill, appreciate it. Thank you.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama facing hard questions on faith and politics. Campbell Brown leads a CNN special event, "THE COMPASSION FORUM," Sunday, 8:00 p.m. Eastern only on CNN, your home for politics.
Hillary Clinton challenges John McCain and Barack Obama on the war in Iraq. Go to CNNPolitics.com for more information. CNNPolitics.com is your source for everything political.
KEILAR: An uptick in U.S. troop deaths in Iraq. The military reporting 19 American forces killed this month mostly in Baghdad. In the latest incident, an American soldier killed Wednesday in a roadside bombing in the center of the city. That makes 4,031 U.S. troops killed in the Iraq war since it began in March of 2003.
HARRIS: The commander in chief tackling Iraq. He is talking about shorter combat tours live this morning. A preview with a political veteran in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: President Bush talks about Iraq about -- I don't know -- 11:30. I was about to say two hours from now, but a little less than that. His term in office is winding down, but is the war winding up?
Joining me live, CNN senior political analyst David Gergen. He is in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
David, good to see you.
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Thank you, Tony. Glad to talk to you.
HARRIS: Hey, and David, why is this a midday speech? One might expect this to be a primetime event?
GERGEN: Well, you know, he's been to that well so many times. I think he realizes there's not much water left in it so he's going to go -- I think the main thing he's doing here, Tony, is he's coming right behind Petraeus to make sure that there's no light between the Petraeus testimony and what he's saying. He's going to be really snuggly up and endorse Petraeus, put a period at the end of that sentence, maybe even an exclamation point.
HARRIS: Yes.
GERGEN: And make it clear, you know, we speak as one voice, what you heard for the last two days in testimony is what I also believe. And that is our policy. And by the way, I'm leaving this to the next president.
HARRIS: Yes, wasn't that clear.
GERGEN: Yes.
HARRIS: Again, midday, and not primetime. Could we fairly conclude -- don't want to be unfair here. But could we fairly conclude the president has given up on the idea of winning more public support for this war effort?
GERGEN: I think he would like -- I think he's -- I think the best he hopes for right now is to keep support for keeping the troops in there.
HARRIS: Yes.
GERGEN: The public has turned so firmly against the whole idea of the war, that's not going to come back. But what has changed in recent months is that people are willing to give the administration more of a free hand at how long they leave the troops in there. And that's what the -- you know, the early success of the surge helped that. And what put a shadow over the Petraeus testimony was what happened in Basra in the last couple of weeks.
HARRIS: Yes. Yes.
GERGEN: And so he could have come back here almost in -- you know, in a celebratory mood and almost a heroic status.
HARRIS: That's true.
GERGEN: But I think that General Petraeus recognizes that there was a darker mood after Basra. And that's why he said, you know, let's not -- let's keep the champagne bottle at the back of the fridge.
HARRIS: Yes. Let -- you teed it up perfectly. Let's listen to this. Five years in, $3 billion a week into the war effort. What an investment by the American people, blood and treasure. And we get this assessment of the war from General Petraeus.
Have a listen, then I got a question for you, David.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, CMDR., MUTINATL. FORCE-IRAQ: We haven't turned any corners, we haven't seen any lights at the end of the tunnel. The champagne bottle's been pushed to the back of the refrigerator. And the progress, while real, is fragile and is reversible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Fragile and reversible. That's what we get in terms of return on investment. I'm wondering, was that -- if you're sitting in the White House and you hear that kind of an assessment from your top general in Iraq, is that -- how do you take that? Is that devastating? What do you think?
GERGEN: I don't think it's devastating. I think what it does is it avoids putting up another -- a banner saying "mission accomplished."
HARRIS: Right. Right.
GERGEN: And that realism is generally well-taken by the American people. They appreciate when somebody comes back and says, look, we're doing better than we were but it's still tough and it is reversible. I think that people prefer straight talk in a situation like that. We haven't been getting a lot of straight talk out of this war. HARRIS: Yes. I think you're right about that.
Let me switch gears to Iran for just a moment. A lot of testimony on Iraq this week.
GERGEN: Yes.
HARRIS: Is Iran -- do you have a clear few of this? Is Iran destabilizing Iraq?
GERGEN: Iran is working to destabilize Iraq. Iran is mostly working to gain more power and influence. And I'm glad you raised this because I don't think it's gotten enough coverage or attention during this testimony. What we're seeing is that we've always assumed we had two problems that were somewhat separate. We had Iraq and we had Iran. And we were trying to get stability in Iraq and trying to make sure Iran didn't get nuclear weapons.
HARRIS: Yes.
GERGEN: Now as Iran -- now we're seeing that Iran is sticking its nose into Iraq more and more, taking more and more influence. And it -- what it suggests is that it may be very hard to get out of Iraq without Iran signing on. In other words, to keep safety and security in Iraq, we may need to have the kind of blessing or complicit agreement of the Iranians.
HARRIS: Oh boy.
GERGEN: Now what does that do? From the Iranians' point of view it gives them the upper hand against us as they negotiate on the question of nuclear power. They're going to be interested in a tradeoff. We'll let you get out of Iraq, but you let us have the bomb. And that's a trade off that totally not in the interest of the United States.
HARRIS: Wow.
GERGEN: So that's why this Iranian -- this growing Iranian influence is not only troublesome for Iraq itself but it's very troublesome for how we defuse the problems of Iran.
HARRIS: Well, David Gergen, that's a piece of analysis we need to consider for a moment here.
David Gergen for us this morning. Good to see you, David, as always.
GERGEN: Thank you very much.
HARRIS: And you can count on CNN for live coverage of President Bush's address to the nation on Iraq. His speech set to begin at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time, 8:30 a.m. Pacific live right here in the NEWSROOM.
KEILAR: Well, what is John McCain's strategy for Iraq? He is running for president after all and he's put his questions to the U.S. war commander. Now we put our questions to a top McCain supporter.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: The presidential candidates have put their questions to the top U.S. commander in Iraq. Well, now the presidential campaigns, they're taking our questions.
You heard yesterday from Hillary Clinton's camp, next hour, you'll hear from Obama's side. But right now, let's get John McCain's position.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our goal, my goal, is an Iraq that no longer needs American troops. And I believe we can achieve that goal perhaps sooner than many imagine. But I also believe that the promise of withdrawal of our forces, regardless of the consequences, would constitute a failure of political and moral leadership.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: McCain supporter, North Carolina senator, Richard Burr, joining us now from Washington.
Senator, thanks for being with us.
SEN. RICHARD BURR (R), NORTH CAROLINA: Great to be with you.
KEILAR: And I just want to ask you because the majority of Americans really not happy with the direction the Iraq war is taking. Democrats, opposition to Senator John McCain saying that McCain is just a continuation of the Bush administration strategy. But how is his strategy different?
BURR: Let me say it would concern me if the American people were comfortable with war. But clearly John McCain was a voice for change in how we carried out this war. Eight months ago, this war was spiraling in the wrong direction. And with General Petraeus's help, he's turned it around. The combination of the president's decision to surge and to change our strategy, which is what John McCain called for.
And today, the trend is headed in a different direction. We see less and less loss of American life. But more importantly, we see more and more of the Iraqi army taking the lead role in their own security. And I think that's what the objective is.
KEILAR: Now General Petraeus, he said yesterday -- basically it's what he didn't say that a lot of people were listening to. He really would not be pinned down on talking about the type of conditions that would need to be seen on the ground for a troop drawdown to happen. What would John McCain need to see before he would consider bringing troops home?
BURR: Well, I think what General Petraeus said was that he was going to bring the troops down to the pre-surge level and then he was going to take a six-week period where he reviewed the landscape in Iraq, the capabilities of the Iraqi army. And then he would make a decision once he had done that review.
Clearly, General Petraeus wants to reach the critical mass that's needed to reduce significantly U.S. troops. But it's impossible for anybody today to define exactly what that critical mass is.
KEILAR: But Senator, I just ask you because it seems like -- if you're saying that Senator McCain wouldn't commit to really what he would need to be seeing on the ground to bring troops home, I mean, what if things were to really improve, he won't even commit to bringing troops home at that point?
BURR: Well, I think Senator McCain said in the clip you played just earlier that he believes that this can be done in a way that brings more troops home faster than the American people or anybody in the world thinks.
KEILAR: But I...
BURR: We've got to show resolve to get there.
KEILAR: But I just wonder, Senator, because it seems so abstract. And I think that's one of the things that we're hearing that American people have such a problem with. How would Senator McCain take it from the abstract to making something concrete?
BURR: He would continue to make sure that our strategies reflect the needs of the mission in Iraq, which was something that we didn't do in the early years of this war. But when we stop and think about it, John McCain really had a career in the military and went to war and was a prisoner of war. He understands the need to make sure that you don't stake yourselves out somewhere that your enemy, in fact, never lets you achieve getting there.
And I think we've got to rely on our commanders in the field to guide this mission in the next several months.
KEILAR: But how will he deal with the frustration of the American people? Obviously, there is frustration now. And if things continue to move at such a slow pace, there will continue to be even growing frustration.
BURR: Absolutely. But he will deal with it by showing continued progress where the Iraqi army continues to take more and more of the responsibility of the fight, where there are less American casualties, both in dead and in wounded. And where we can look over the horizon and see an end to this.
But there's one thing that's different today than eight months ago. The Iraqi people now see hope. And that's why we continue to have the Iraqi people join in this fight. And that's what's made as big a part of the difference as the collective nature of our coalition forces now include the Iraqi people.
KEILAR: Senator, I know you're very busy. Thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule. Appreciate it.
BURR: Great to be with you.
KEILAR: Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina, speaking with us there.
And as I said earlier we're trying to nail down the plan that each presidential hopeful has for Iraq. You heard yesterday from Hillary Clinton's side. Next hour, you'll be hearing from Barack Obama's camp right here on the CNN NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Suicide attack hit Afghanistan. The apparent target a NATO convoy. It happened in the southern city of Kandahar. A car bomb blew up killing eight people, all said to be civilians. More than 20 others were wounded, including some police. Several shops nearby were damaged by the blast.
Lining up for the bad news, if you are flying American today, get ready for more cancellation chaos.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Good morning. I'm Brianna Keilar.
HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. Stay in (INAUDIBLE) all day in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Here's what's on the rundown.
Dangerous skies across the heartland. A big storm system may fuel a tornado outbreak today.
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